Silent Film Star: Edna Purviance.

Personal Quote:

"Mr. Chaplin asked me if I would like to act in pictures with him. I laughed at the idea, but agreed to try it. I guess he took me because I had nothing to unlearn and he could teach me in his own way. I want to tell you that I suffered untold agonies. Eyes seemed to be everywhere. I was simply frightened to death. But he had unlimited patience in directing me and teaching me."

EDNA PURVIANCE: Fun Facts

(1915), Chaplin was working on his second film with Essanay Studios. He was looking for a leading lady for the film A Night Out, one of his fellow workers saw Purviance at a Tate's Cafe in San Francisco and thought she would be perfect for the role. Chaplin met with her, at first he was concerned that she might be too serious for comedic roles. Chaplin and Purviance began a romance during the making of Essanay, Mutual, and First National films of (1915–1917). Purviance performed in 33 of Chaplin's films, including (1921)The Kid. Her last film with him, A Woman of Paris. She went on to perform in Education de Prince, just before she retired. Chaplin kept her on his payroll until her death.

Charles Chaplin "The Kid" (1921)

"The Kid" (1921) is a silent comedy drama written, directed, and starring Charles Chaplin. Not only is it Chaplin's first feature length film, but it also made him a living legend. "The Kid" begins with an unwed mother, played by Edna Purviance, leaving a charity hospital with a newborn baby in her arms. The mother leaves her baby with a pleading note in the back of a limousine and walks away. After sitting alone on a park bench thinking about committing suicide, she decides to return to the limousine and get her baby, only to find him missing. The limousine has been stolen by thieves who dumped the baby by a garbage can in a poor district of town. The tramp, played by Charles Chaplin, finds the baby on the ground wrapped in a blanket. He tries to pass the baby off to someone else, including a mother with her baby carriage, but after coming across a note which reads, "Please love and care for this orphan child," he decides to take him to his one-room shack in the slums.

Five years later, the kid and the tramp make an interesting pair. The kid's job is to break the neighborhood windows so that the tramp could come by to replace them with his selection of window glass. The mother has become an opera star who devotes her spare time with charitable work for children living in the poor neighborhoods in hope of finding her lost boy. The kid and his mother actually meet on various occasions, but they are not aware of each other's identities. The story takes a dramatic twist when the kid becomes seriously ill and in need of medical attention. A doctor called by the mother discovers the note with the truth about the kid and reports it to the authorities who come to take him away from the tramp. Will the tramp lose the kid? "The Kid" (1921) was welcomed with international acclaim when it was released. Chaplin's undisputed master work to date, it still remains one of his finest achievements. The success was not Chaplin's alone. Part of it belonged to six-year-old Jackie Coogan in the title role. Coogan is wonderful as the kid and is easily Chaplin's most memorable costar. By having the little tramp find and raise a child, Chaplin humanized him in a way never seen in his other films. The little tramp may not be the best father in the world, but his love for the kid is genuinely touching and hilarious. The tramp's awkward attempts to care for the kid's needs are a successful combination of comedy and tenderness. One example is the brief scene in which the tramp cuts out diapers from a sheet and attaches a nipple to a coffeepot as a substitute for a baby bottle. The most touching moment of the film is when the kid has to be pulled out of the tramp's arms by the authorities. It is heartbreaking to see the kid taken away from the tramp by force. Partly inspired by Chaplin's own poor upbringing, "The Kid" successfully blends sentimentality, slapstick, and social conscience to create one of the most popular comedies of the silent era.
THE KID(1921) MOVIE TRAILER.

"A WOMAN OF PARIS" (1923) Chaplin

"A Woman of Paris" (1923) is a silent melodrama that is perhaps the least famous of all Charles Chaplin's films. Edited, written, produced and directed by Chaplin for United Artists, the film is notable for being the first to not feature himself as the leading actor. Setting new standards in silent dramatic acting and directing, "A Woman of Paris" is a scrutiny in the inconsistencies of love. The story begins with Marie St. Clair, played by Edna Purviance, a simple girl living in a French village who plans to elope with her lover, artist Jean Millet, played by Carl Miller, even though her stepfather attempts to stop her. Jean brings her to his home, but they are also rejected by his father. Jean and Marie decide to leave for Paris that night. They proceed to the railroad station where Jean leaves Marie with money for tickets while he returns home to pack. A final confrontation with his parents brings on a fatal stroke to his father. When Marie calls Jean to find out why he is late, he tells her that he must stay. Believing she has been jilted by her lover, Marie boards the train to Paris by herself. A year later, Marie has assimilated into the upper-class lifestyle of Paris, having become the mistress of a wealthy, cynical businessman, Pierre Revel, played by Adolphe Menjou. It is at this point in time that she and Jean suddenly meet again. Even though both of them are glad to see each other, the passage of time has made them reserved and they conceal their real emotions. Jean has become an accomplished artist and Marie hires him to paint her portrait. However, Jean paints her as he knew her in the small village. When Jean declares his love, Marie is forced to choose between a life of love or a life of luxury. Jean is torn between his lingering love for Marie and his mother's insistence that she is not a respectable woman. Misinterpreting events, Marie bounces back and forth between security and love. The ending is quite emotional.

"A Woman of Paris" was a serious, sophisticated continental drama that was very much out of tune with the then dominant trends in American filmmaking. Chaplin had made the film because he wanted to direct a drama and make his longtime leading lady, Edna Purviance, a star, but this never happened. Instead, co-star Adolphe Menjou launched into superstardom after the film's release. Menjou is wonderful as the rich, conceited playboy. The film is stunning to look at; the women's costumes and sets are gorgeous. The cinematography is especially first rate. Acclaimed by critics and renounced by the audience, "A Woman of Paris" was a commercial flop. It was also banned in several states on the basis of immorality. There are some scandalous Parisian party scenes, including one where a mummified woman unspools her wrapping onto a fellow partygoer and ends up naked. The film is quite an interesting change of pace from Chaplin and is definitely worth watching. "A Woman of Paris" is not only an outstanding piece of filmmaking, but it is also a strong commentary about what is truly important in life.